Subscription television systems typically include an electronic program guide (EPG). With the development of interactive digital set-top boxes (STBs), a new type of advanced multimedia EPGs were developed which may be referred to sometimes as interactive program guides (IPGs). Today, the acronyms EPG and IPG may be used interchangeably.
The EPG provides an onscreen display of a program grid menu that includes a program lineup and episode information for every channel for the next several days. The program grid menu may be arranged in various ways. The program grid menu itself is a user interface where the user may navigate the program grid menu using arrow keys on a remote. For example, FIG. 1 illustrates a typical EPG having a program grid menu based on available channel and time. The user can navigate or scroll through the list of programs within the selected time slot until the desired program is highlighted. Typically, a field in the EPG is shown as being highlighted by using a different color background relative the backgrounds of any other field. Alternatively, a selectable field may be depicted as being enlarged or oversized. In such case, the selectable field may be referred to as a pill.
Once the desired field is highlighted as a selectable item, the user may select the highlighted field using the select button on the remote. In FIG. 1, the user has highlighted the field corresponding with the program titled “Football” which, in turn, corresponds with SPORTS1 channel 1937. The surrounding boundary or edge of the field corresponding with “Football” has been bolded to depict being highlighted. The boundaries of other fields associated with the highlighted field may also be bolded such as the corresponding channel and time.
FIG. 2 also illustrates a menu of options in which the user may interface. The user may scroll through a list of preferences until the desired field is highlighted. The highlighted field becomes selectable and therefore may be referred to as active. The user may then select that option to change its current status. Bolding is used again in FIG. 2 to depict the Pay-Per-View (PPV) Purchases option being highlighted. Although FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrate two particular examples where a field is highlighted within the EPG, today's EPGs include hundreds or even thousands of possibilities which the user may scroll through, highlight and select.
However, because of the increasing number of options within an EPG, as well as because of the difficulty some users have determining which item is selectable, there is a need to bring greater attention to an active list which a user may scroll through and/or a need to bring greater attention to the selectable item in the list.